More Oscar Voters May View DVDs

By MICHAEL CIEPLY

Published: May 7, 2013

LOS ANGELES — Breaking with a practice that had narrowed Oscar voting in certain categories to those who had seen films on the big screen, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Saturday said it would provide members with DVD versions of nominees in the best foreign film and best documentary short categories, while allowing all voters to cast a final ballot in those races.

With the change, all Academy voters are now permitted to vote in all 24 Oscar categories, whether or not they have seen the nominees in a theater. Hawk Koch, the president of the Academy, announced the change at a meeting on Saturday of its members — in person and via video — in Beverly Hills, New York and the San Francisco area.

The meeting was closed to the news media. But a statement describing the changes included a previously undisclosed detail about Oscar voting: it said that a record 90 percent of eligible members had cast ballots for the last round of awards.

In the past, the Academy has treated its voting participation rate as a closely held secret.

This is a more complete version of the story than the one that appeared in print.